Iron and zinc physiology in sweetpotato

Sweetpotato [Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.] is an important provider of nutrition in developing countries. High productivity in the form of starch and beta carotene richness underlies its potential. A sweetpotato with adequate levels of iron and zinc would greatly aid efforts to reduce dietary deficiencies of iron and zinc. The objective of this work is to document the physiological accumulation of iron and zinc in sweetpotato during development and the mechanisms responsible for iron uptake. Six varieties (‘IPS 163, ‘Beauregard’,‘Koto-puki’, ‘Pung-mi’, ‘Duanyanghon’, and ‘Xushu 18’) were compared to understand iron and zinc accumulation during development. Results showed that micronutrient content in developing roots varied minimally during storage root development (13-16 weeks after planting). Varieties tend to accumulate these micronutrients similarly throughout development. These results suggest that varieties can be assayed for iron and zinc concentration anytime roots are of sufficient size for analysis. Hydroponic studies were conducted to determine how high and low iron concentration genotypes respond to the absence of iron in nutrient solution. Variables included iron reductase, pH, and root mass development. Results from the nutrient solution study showed that the pH of nutrient solution increased. A low pH environment facilitates the transition from an unavailable form of Fe (III) to an available form Fe (II). Sweetpotato may respond differentially than other species. Iron reductase activity differed among varieties. High iron accumulating ‘Pata de Oso’ showed reduced iron reductase activity in plants grown in an iron deficient environment. In contrast, ‘Pung-mi’, a low iron accumulating variety, significantly increased iron reductase activity when grown in an iron deficient environment. These results suggest that high iron accumulating varieties did not increase iron reductase activity. Varieties poor in iron accumulation either did not vary or seemed to increase iron reductase activity in an iron deficient environment. A greater root mass is also a means by which plants can uptake greater amounts of iron. High iron concentration varieties had the lowest root mass in comparison to low concentration varieties. When Fe-sufficient and Fe-deficient treatments were compared, only ‘Pung-mi’ showed a significantly smaller root mass when grown in an Fe-deficient environment

Alien Registration- Singleton, Mary K. (Portland, Cumberland County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/21305/thumbnail.jp

Building Research Capacity in Botswana: A Randomized Trial Comparing Training Methodologies in the Botswana Ethics Training Initiative

Background Little empirical data are available on the extent to which capacity-building programs in research ethics prepare trainees to apply ethical reasoning skills to the design, conduct, or review of research. A randomized controlled trial was conducted in Botswana in 2010 to assess the effectiveness of a case-based intervention using email to augment in-person seminars. Methods University faculty and current and prospective IRB/REC members took part in a semester-long training program in research ethics. Participants attended two 2-day seminars and were assigned at random to one of two on-line arms of the trial. Participants in both arms completed on-line international modules from the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative. Between seminars, intervention-arm participants were also emailed a weekly case to analyze in response to set questions; responses and individualized faculty feedback were exchanged via email. Tests assessing ethics knowledge were administered at the start of each seminar. The post-test included an additional section in which participants were asked to identify the ethical issues highlighted in five case studies from a list of multiple-choice responses. Results were analyzed using regression and ANOVA. Results Of the 71 participants (36 control, 35 intervention) enrolled at the first seminar, 41 (57.7%) attended the second seminar (19 control, 22 intervention). In the intervention arm, 19 (54.3%) participants fully completed and 8 (22.9%) partially completed all six weekly cases. The mean score was higher on the post-test (30.3/40) than on the pre-test (28.0/40), and individual post- and pre-test scores were highly correlated (r = 0.65, p \u3c 0.0001). Group assignment alone did not have an effect on test scores (p \u3e 0.84), but intervention-arm subjects who completed all assigned cases answered an average of 3.2 more questions correctly on the post-test than others, controlling for pre-test scores (p = 0.003). Conclusions Completion of the case-based intervention improved respondents\u27 test scores, with those who completed all six email cases scoring roughly 10% better than those who failed to complete this task and those in the control arm. There was only suggestive evidence that intensive case work improved ethical issue identification, although there was limited ability to assess this outcome due to a high drop-out rate

Penetrance of Parkinson's Disease in LRRK2 p.G2019S Carriers Is Modified by a Polygenic Risk Score

Pentti Tienari työryhmän jäsenenä.Background Although the leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 p.G2019S mutation has been demonstrated to be a strong risk factor for PD, factors that contribute to penetrance among carriers, other than aging, have not been well identified. Objectives To evaluate whether a cumulative genetic risk identified in the recent genome-wide study is associated with penetrance of PD among p.G2019S mutation carriers. Methods We included p.G2019S heterozygote carriers with European ancestry in three genetic cohorts in which the mutation carriers with and without PD were selectively recruited. We also included the carriers from two data sets: one from a case-control setting without selection of mutation carriers and the other from a population sampling. Associations between polygenic risk score constructed from 89 variants reported recently and PD were tested and meta-analyzed. We also explored the interaction of age and PRS. Results After excluding eight homozygotes, 833 p.G2019S heterozygote carriers (439 PD and 394 unaffected) were analyzed. Polygenic risk score was associated with a higher penetrance of PD (odds ratio: 1.34; 95% confidence interval: [1.09, 1.64] per +1 standard deviation; P = 0.005). In addition, associations with polygenic risk score and penetrance were stronger in the younger participants (main effect: odds ratio 1.28 [1.04, 1.58] per +1 standard deviation; P = 0.022; interaction effect: odds ratio 0.78 [0.64, 0.94] per +1 standard deviation and + 10 years of age; P = 0.008). Conclusions Our results suggest that there is a genetic contribution for penetrance of PD among p.G2019S carriers. These results have important etiological consequences and potential impact on the selection of subjects for clinical trials. (c) 2020 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder SocietyPeer reviewe

Towards a 'Community for Practice'—A Narrative Analysis of the Evolution of Higher Education Scholars

In higher education (HE), collaborative activities that revolve around a core idea, practice, or knowledge base, such as learning circles, communities of practice or inquiry, peer observation, and peer-assisted teaching, are known to support professional learning. This paper explores the experiences of eight HE scholars from Australia and New Zealand, across four years, as they recognized a new means of collaborative professional development that transcends known approaches and extends beyond an immediate focal point. The group originally formed to support the development of HE fellowship applications, but evolved to what they now consider a community for practice (CfP), where the purpose of collaboration has changed to meet the unique learning needs of each member. During their four years of collaboration, meeting discussions were recorded, and individual and community narrative reflections about participation in the group were created. A thematic analysis of these collective data sources revealed the group’s evolution, and the authors draw on their experiences to tell their story with an aim to enhance professional learning in HE. The study highlights that individuals’ distinct and varied needs can be developed and supported through scholarly, collegial engagements such as a CfP, which does not necessarily require an immediate point of practice

Exile Vol. XXI No. 1

FICTION Lonely Wire Hangers by Larry Weber 7-11 untitled by Peggy Gifford 15-16 Anything by Joe Bolster 20-21 Easter Story by Ellen Claffy 25-27 Melanie by Dawn Patnode 31-34 PHOTOGRAPHY by Nanny Trippe 4, 22, 24, 28 by Geoffery Yeomans 6, 11, 17, 28, 30, 35, 36, 40 POETRY untitled by Martin Cloran 5 Mirror, Mirror by Tigger Montague 12 Twenty-Two Year Decay by Tigger Montague 13 Rice Puddin\u27 by Mary Mueller 14 untitled by Sharon Singleton 18 untitled by Sharon Singleton 19 untitled by Kim McMullen 23 Audience by Dawn Patnode 29 Extinction by Vic Coccimiglio 37 The Only Way I Know Her by Vic Coccimiglio 38 Touch by Vic Coccimiglio 38 Family by Vic Coccimiglio 3

Exile Vol. XX No. 1

ARTWORK by Sue Sartarelli cover, 24 by Chris Schulze 5, 24, 29 by Heather Richey 6 by Katheryn Riedl 7 by Jane Joldersma 10 by Jan Mosher 12 Pat Victory 15 Rona Rosen 20, 31 Arthur Ernst 21 Kim McMullen 24 FICTION First Time by Bud Foufos 3-4 Father\u27s Last Party by Vic Coccimiglio 11 untitled by Catherine Bader 16-17 God and Sergeant Mays by J. Frank Burkhard 22 Pages of a Story by Peter Porteous 27-31 POETRY The Rest by Ezra Pound (preface) In the Midst of an Echo by Phil Mercurio 4 Sierra Madre Prose by John Purcell 5 untitled by Sue Payne 6 untitled by Cathy Graff 6 untitled by Sharon Singleton 7 Big Al by Phil Mercurio 9-10 untitled by Sharon Singleton 12 Folksinger by Alison Orleans 13 Sweat Rebellion by S. Hunt 13 Blackgrey by Laurie Wharton 14 What is she to you? by Peter Porteous 18 Pojects by Mary Mueller 21 untitled by Dawn Patnode 25 The Barn by Mary Schloss 25 PHOTOGRAPHY by Bruce Andre 1, 18 by Jane Joldersma 4, 23, 26 by Breese Olander 8 by Pam Purcell 8 by Loree Ruman 13, 14 Foster Schmidt 19 Chip Andreae 19, 23 Nancy Pickenson 26 Nancy Chorpenning 32 Many thanks to the advertising agencie -2 Pgs. 25 and 26 are out of order in the published edition and can be found between pages 8 and 9

Evidence for dynamics in proteins as a mechanism for ligand dissociation

Signal transduction, regulatory processes, and pharmaceutical responses are highly dependent upon ligand residence times. Gaining insight into how physical factors influence residence times, or koff, should enhance our ability to manipulate biological interactions. We report experiments that yield structural insight into koff for a series of eight 2,4-diaminopyrimidine inhibitors of dihydrofolate reductase that vary by six orders of magnitude in binding affinity. NMR relaxation dispersion experiments revealed a common set of residues near the binding site that undergo a concerted, millisecond-timescale switching event to a previously unidentified conformation. The rate of switching from ground to excited conformations correlates exponentially with Ki and koff, suggesting that protein dynamics serves as a mechanical initiator of ligand dissociation within this series and potentially for other macromolecule-ligand systems. Although kconf,forward is faster than koff, use of the ligand series allowed for connections to be drawn between kinetic events on different timescales

Invasive Haemophilus influenzae Disease, Europe, 1996–2006

Incidence and case-fatality ratios are higher for non–type b than for type b infection